1. Technical Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, more particularly, the processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, which accommodates objects to be processed, such as semiconductor wafers and LCD glass substrates, in a processing chamber having a sealed atmosphere and which makes the objects in contact with processing fluid (e.g. chemical liquid, rinsing liquid), drying fluid, reactive gas or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally in the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices and the LCD manufacturing process, there is widely adopted, as one processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, a cleaning and drying apparatus that uses the processing fluid, such as processing liquid and gas, in order to remove resist sticking to the object to be processed (e.g. semiconductor wafer, LCD glass) and residue (polymer etc.) sticking thereto after the drying process. Note, the above object to be processed will be referred as wafer, hereinafter. Additionally, in this specification, the processing liquid designates chemical liquid (e.g. organic solvent, organic acid, inorganic acid), rinsing liquid or the like, while the gas designates dry gas, atmosphere-control gas or the like.
As the conventional cleaning and drying apparatus of this kind, for example, there is known a cleaning and drying apparatus that comprises a processing chamber having one side opened to load and unloading the wafers etc., holding means (e.g. rotor) for rotating a carrier arranged in the processing chamber to accommodate the wafers etc., closing means (e.g. lid) for closing the opening of the processing chamber, liquid supply means for supplying the wafers etc. with liquid and gas supply means for supplying the wafers etc. with gas.
When processing the wafers etc. in contact with the processing fluid in the above cleaning and drying apparatus, a gap between the processing chamber and the closing means (i.e. lid) has to be maintained in a leak-tight manner by the sealing mechanism in order to prevent the leakage of the processing fluid to the outside. Hitherto, either the processing chamber or the closing means (lid) has been provided with a sealing member to maintain the gap between the processing chamber and the closing means (lid) in the leak-tight manner.
However, the conventional sealing mechanism has been required to improve its sealing capability due to the sealing member of its single-row structure. That is, if the sealing part is damaged or does not give full sealing effect for some reason or other, then a problem may arise in that the processing fluid or vapor resulting from using high-temperature liquid or gas as the processing liquid leaks outside. With the necessity of sealing a part operating at both times of sealing and non-sealing, it has been also studied to expand the sealing member by using pressurized fluid at the sealing; nevertheless there still exists a problem of the sealing member""s short life span and also a necessity of measure against the sealing member""s breakage. Further, since the use of high-temperature liquid or gas as the processing fluid causes the sealing member to be exposed to the high-temperature atmosphere, the sealing member has to be made from heat-resistant material, restricting the scope of materials for the sealing member.
In the conventional sealing mechanism of this kind, there is a possibility that the sealing member is deteriorated by the atmosphere of high temperature. If the sealing member is pressurized by compressive fluid, such as air and N2-gas, it is feared that due to the usual application of constant pressure, the sealing member swells for breakage or is unable to give full play to its sealing effect under the processing atmosphere of high temperature. In such a case, a problem may arise in that the processing fluid or the vapor resulting from using high-temperature liquid or gas as the processing fluid leaks out. Again, when using high-temperature liquid or gas as the processing fluid, there may arise a problem that rubber or synthetic resin material forming the sealing member is so hardened or softened improperly that not only does the sealing capability drop, but also the life span of the seaming member is deteriorated.
Under the above situation, the object of the present invention is to provide a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, which is capable of both improvement of sealing capability and increase of life span.
The first feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making an object to be processed that is positioned in the processing chamber, to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with flexible hollow sealing members in a duplex arrangement; and a source of pressurized fluid is connected to respective hollow parts of the hollow sealing members through a pressure detector and a closing valve.
With the above structure, when supplying the pressurized fluid from the source into the hollow parts of the hollow sealing members in double, they swell for sealing. Simultaneously, the pressurized condition at this time can be monitored by pressure-detecting means. Therefore, even if one of the hollow sealing members is broken so as not to display its sealing effect, such a situation can be detected by the pressure-detecting means. Moreover, since the other hollow sealing member operates to maintain the sealing capability of the apparatus in spite of the broken hollow sealing member, it is possible to plan to prolong the life of the whole sealing section of the apparatus and also possible to improve its sealing capability and security.
The second feature of the present invention resides in that the source of pressurized fluid is adapted so as to supply a gas source.
The third feature of the present invention resides in that the source of pressurized fluid is adapted so as to supply cooling water; and the hollow parts of the hollow sealing members are connected with a drain pipe. Thus, with the flowing of the cooling water as the pressurized fluid into the hollow parts of the hollow sealing members, the life of the sealing members themselves can be prolonged with a restraint on a rise in temperature of the sealing members by the heat treatment at high temperatures.
The fourth feature of the present invention resides in that the drain pipe is provided with a closing valve and a flow regulator in parallel. Thus, since the closing means and the flow-regulating means are juxtaposed in the drain pipe, both sealing state and non-sealing state can be accomplished by the adjustment in displacement of the cooling water. Additionally, the opening of the closing means in case of breakage of the sealing members allows the cooling water to be drained quickly.
The fifth feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making an object to be processed that is positioned in the processing chamber, to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with a deformable hollow sealing member which is deformable against the processing container body or the closing member; and the deformable hollow sealing member has a hollow part connected to a closing switching valve and a pressure regulator.
With this structure, it is possible to switch the operation of the sealing mechanism between its sealing state and non-sealing state by the application of small positive or small negative pressure through the pressure-regulating means on the deformable hollow sealing members for their deformation. Thus, since the frictional wear is reduced in comparison with the sealing members swelling by the pressurized fluid, it is possible to plan an increase in the life of the sealing members.
The sixth feature of the present invention resides in that the deformable hollow sealing member is arranged doubly and has a hollow part further connected to a pressure detector. With this structure, it is possible to establish the sealing condition by, for example, the application of positive or negative pressure via the pressure-regulating means on the hollow parts of the hollow sealing members for their deformation. Further, the pressurized or pressure-reduced condition can be monitored by the pressure-detecting means. Therefore, even if one of the hollow sealing members is broken so as not to display its sealing effect, such a situation can be detected by the pressure-detecting means. Moreover, since the other hollow sealing member operates to maintain the sealing capability of the apparatus in spite of the broken hollow sealing member, it is possible to increase the life of the whole sealing section of the apparatus and also possible to improve its sealing capability and security.
The seventh feature of the present invention resides in that the pressurized regulator is identical to a gas source.
The eighth feature of the present invention resides in that the pressurized regulator is identical to a suction device.
The ninth feature of the present invention resides in that an interval between the hollow sealing members in the duplex arrangement is connected with an exhaust device through a leakage detector. With this structure, it is possible to monitor the sealing situation of the hollow sealing members. Additionally, by increasing the displacement, the processing chamber and the closing means can be drawn together into close contact, allowing the sealing capability to be improved furthermore.
The 10th. feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making an object to be processed that is positioned in the processing chamber, to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with a flexible hollow sealing member; and a source of pressurized fluid is connected to a hollow part of the hollow sealing member through a fluid pipeline interposing a heat regulator for pressurized fluid.
The 11th. feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening capable of discharging a processing fluid and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making an object to be processed that is positioned in the processing chamber to contact the processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with a flexible hollow sealing member; and a source of pressurized fluid is connected to a hollow part of the hollow sealing member through a fluid pipeline interposing a heat regulator for pressurized fluid.
The 12th. feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening capable of loading and unloading an object to be processed and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making the object that is positioned in the processing chamber to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with a flexible hollow sealing member; and a source of pressurized fluid is connected to a hollow part of the hollow sealing member through a fluid pipeline interposing a heat regulator for pressurized fluid.
The 13th. feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having an opening, a holder for holding an object to be processed in a processing chamber defined in the processing container, and a rod provided, at an end thereof, with the holder and also slidably inserted into the opening, and also making the object held by the holder to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein a flexible hollow sealing member is arranged on the processing container sliding with respect to the rod; and a source of pressurized fluid is connected to a hollow part of the hollow sealing member through a fluid pipeline interposing a heat regulator for pressurized fluid.
According to the 10th., 11th., 12th. and 13th. features of the invention, when supplying the pressurized fluid, for example, air, inert gas, etc. from the source of pressurized fluid into the hollow part of the hollow sealing member, it swells for sealing. Simultaneously, the temperature of pressurized fluid can be controlled by the heat regulating means. Thus, with the possibility of adjusting the temperature of the pressurized fluid in accordance with the temperature of the processing fluid, it is possible to bring the hollow sealing member into a suitable condition for expansion and contraction, whereby the life of the sealing member can be increased with an improvement in sealing capability of the mechanism.
The 14th. feature of the present invention resides in that a pressure detector and a closing valve are interposed in the fluid pipeline. Therefore, even if the hollow sealing member is broken so as not to display its sealing effect, such a situation can be detected by the pressure-detecting means, improving the security of the apparatus.
The 15th. feature of the present invention resides in that the source of pressurized fluid is adapted so as to supply a gas source.
The 16th. feature of the present invention resides in that the source of pressurized fluid is formed by a liquid supply source, while drain pipe is connected with the hollow part of the hollow sealing member. In this way, with the flowing of liquid (incompressible fluid) as the pressurized fluid into the hollow part of the hollow sealing member, it is possible to make both expansion and contraction of the sealing member properly without being influenced by thermal circumference, allowing the life of the sealing member itself to be increased.
The 17th. feature of the present invention resides in that the drain pipe has a closing valve and a flow regulator interposed in parallel. With this arrangement, it is possible to accomplish both sealing state and non-sealing state by adjusting the displacement of the liquid and also possible to supply the liquid of controlled temperature at both sealing state and non-sealing state. Additionally, the opening of the closing means in case of breakage of the sealing member allows the liquid to be drained quickly.
The 18th. feature of the present invention resides in the provision of a processing apparatus with sealing mechanism, comprising a processing container having a processing container body with an opening and a closing member for closing the opening, the processing container defining a processing chamber therein, and also making an object to be processed that is positioned in the processing chamber, to contact a processing fluid thereby processing the object, wherein either one of the processing container body and the closing member is provided, at a closing part formed between the processing container body and the closing member, with a flexible hollow sealing member; and the hollow sealing member includes an outer sealing member having flexibility with a hollow part and an inner sealing member arranged in the hollow part of the outer sealing member to also have flexibility with a hollow part; and the hollow part of the outer sealing member and the hollow part of the inner sealing member are connected with a source of pressurized fluid through a fluid pipeline.
The 19th. feature of the present invention resides in that at least the hollow part of the outer sealing member is supplied with cooled pressurized fluid.
The 20th. feature of the present invention resides in that the hollow part of the inner sealing member and the hollow part of the outer sealing member are supplied with pressurized fluids of the same pressure.